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OREM - Betty Perry, the 70-year-old great-grandmother whose scuffle with a police officer in July catapulted her into the headlines and caught a Los Angeles celebrity attorney's attention, has quietly settled her case with the city.
Perry on Friday, three days before her trial was to begin, entered a no-contest plea in absentia to a reduced charge of disorderly conduct, according to City Prosecutor Andrew Peterson.
In return, the city dropped the zoning violation charge for not watering her lawn. She has to pay a $100 fine and be on unsupervised probation for six months.
"I think both sides can claim victory,'' Peterson said, adding that Perry came away with only an infraction while the city was able to close the case.
M. Paige Benjamin, Perry's attorney, confirmed that his client had accepted the plea deal but declined to comment further. He said a statement would be issued on Monday.
Perry, to avoid media attention, was allowed to file her plea in writing and not attend the hearing, Peterson said.
The case generated national headlines and brought Gloria Allred, who represented the family of Nicole Brown Simpson during O.J. Simpson's murder trial, to Perry's side.
Allred was there when Perry made her initial appearance in court last September, conducting a news conference where she called Orem a "laughingstock" for prosecuting Perry. She joined Perry's defense team and said earlier this week that she was prepared to come to Utah for the three-day trial.
Perry was initially charged with violating the city's nuisance-abatement ordinance, a class-C misdemeanor, and interference with an arrest, a class-B misdemeanor punishable by up to six months in jail and a maximum fine of $1,000.
The charges stem from an incident in July when Officer James Flygare, a member of the city's Neighborhood Protection Unit, attempted to cite Perry for not watering her lawn.
Perry refused to give her her name or sign the citation. She tried to enter her home, telling Flygare that she was going to leave the city and be unreachable. That's when he grabbed her, Peterson said.
Perry's nose was injured in the scuffle.
The city initially apologized for arresting Perry, but prosecutors pressed charges after a Utah Department of Public Safety investigation cleared Flygare of wrongdoing.
Attempts to contact Flygare for comment were not successful.